{"id":235957,"date":"2026-06-12T12:41:21","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T22:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=235957"},"modified":"2026-06-12T12:41:45","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T22:41:45","slug":"grad-research-outreach-workshop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/06\/12\/grad-research-outreach-workshop\/","title":{"rendered":"Grad students sharpen research communication skills through community outreach"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

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University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Mānoa<\/span> graduate students across a wide range of disciplines took their research beyond the classroom this spring, translating complex ideas into hands-on experiences for Oʻahu<\/span> middle school students through the inaugural Graduate Research Outreach Workshop (GROW<\/abbr>).<\/p>\n

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The three-week program in April brought together a cohort of 10 students to strengthen their ability to communicate research in clear, engaging ways for non-specialist audiences. Participants learned to summarize their work in jargon-free language, discuss its real-world importance and create interactive exhibits that make research accessible to the public.<\/p>\n

The workshop culminated in a research outreach fair at Waipahu Intermediate School, where approximately 60 students in career and technical student organization programs explored exhibits led by the graduate students. Waipahu Intermediate faculty advisers and school administrators also attended the event, which highlighted higher education opportunities and showcased the diverse research taking place at UH<\/abbr>.<\/p>\n

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“Research has the greatest impact when people can understand it and connect it to their own lives,” UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Fellowships, Scholarships, and Professional Development Coordinator Kristen Connors said. “GROW<\/abbr> gave our graduate students the opportunity to practice an essential professional skill while also building meaningful relationships with young learners who may one day pursue their own paths in higher education and research.”<\/p>\n

The program was organized by the UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Graduate Division<\/a>, UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Center for Communicating Scientific Information<\/a> and Interim Assistant Vice Provost for Student Academic Success Amy Hubbard, Hamilton Library and the UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> College of Engineering<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Beyond developing communication skills, the program aimed to build stronger connections between the university and the community while encouraging younger students to see themselves as future researchers, innovators and problem-solvers.<\/p>\n

A post-program evaluation found participants responded positively to the experience. All respondents said the workshop met their expectations and that they would recommend it to others. Most also reported feeling more prepared and confident explaining their research through writing, visuals and conversations with public audiences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The three-week program brought together a cohort of 10 students to strengthen their ability to communicate research in clear, engaging ways for non-specialist audiences. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":235959,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[179,301,1516,182,507,1466,1467,128,741,1026,1721,9],"class_list":["post-235957","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-news","tag-college-of-engineering","tag-college-of-social-sciences","tag-communicology","tag-engineering","tag-graduate-education","tag-manoa-enhancing-student-success","tag-manoa-excellence-in-research","tag-manoa-library","tag-school-of-communications","tag-social-science","tag-social-sciences","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t